The Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens are both near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings but seem to be going in different directions as they prepare to play in Montreal on Thursday.
The Penguins have lost two of their last three games, while the Canadiens have won three out of their last four.
Pittsburgh’s most recent game was a 6-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche at home on Tuesday night.
“I didn’t think we were as stiff on the puck,” said Penguins’ coach Mike Sullivan. “I thought we hung onto pucks more in the offensive zone. I thought we could’ve controlled territory a little bit more and forced them to have to defend us a little bit more.”
Pittsburgh fell behind early, down 3-0 in the second period, but managed to close the gap to just one goal by the end of the period. However, Colorado scored three more goals in the third period.
Penguins fans even began booing the team during a power play in the second period. “I think there’s been some times this season when we deserved it,” said Pittsburgh superstar Sidney Crosby, who is also the team captain. “I don’t think tonight was one of them.”
Crosby, now 37, has had a slower start to the season, with eight goals and 19 assists for 27 points in 30 games. In his first 19 seasons, Crosby had more than a point per game on average. His last goal, which came on Nov. 23, was the 600th of his career.
Despite not scoring in his last seven games, Crosby still leads the team in points. Fellow veteran center Evgeni Malkin, 38, is the team’s second-highest scorer with 25 points (six goals, 19 assists). Earlier this season, Malkin reached 500 career goals, a milestone achieved by only 47 other NHL players.
The Canadiens, on the other hand, are coming off a 3-2 shootout win over the Anaheim Ducks at home on Monday.
Patrik Laine had a goal and an assist in the win. Laine, who also scored in the shootout, has three power-play goals in the last four games since returning on Dec. 3 from a knee injury he suffered in the preseason.
“His shot is so hard to stop for a goalie,” said Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault, who made 27 saves. “So, on their side, they’ve got to respect that.”
Kirby Dach’s goal 4:36 into the third period tied the game at 2, just 11 seconds after Troy Terry’s goal for the Ducks gave them a 2-1 lead. The goal sent the game into overtime. It was Dach’s first goal since Oct. 26, ending a 19-game goal drought.
“Dostal mishandled the puck behind the net, so it was wide open for me in front,” Dach said. “It’s kind of the only way one was going to go in, I guess, was to have the whole open net in front of me. So it was nice. ‘Slaf’ (Juraj Slafkovsky) made a good play, and it’s definitely encouraging.”
Center and captain Nick Suzuki leads Montreal with 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 28 games. Right wing Cole Caufield, who has 17 goals, is second on the team with 25 points in 28 games.
